PlayStation Home Inbound

Yes, in the wee hours of the morning, Sony Computer Entertainment quietly announced that its much anticipated free social networking application for the PlayStation 3 will finally be released Thursday, December 11, 2008, after "the successful completion of the closed beta service." However, the news wasn't limited to a simple date. The official statement from the company went on to say that Home will launch with virtual environments in North America for Uncharted: Drake's Fortune and Far Cry 2 with spaces for Warhawk, Resistance, Guitar Hero, and SOCOM to follow.

If you're new to the concept of Home, the basic idea is that you'll create an avatar, have an apartment you can decorate, and be able to wander around the world interacting with other users via voice chat, text, and a handful of games. These title-specific places will be open for users to "discuss specific games, plan strategies and access content and clues that will enhance their gaming experience." According to Sony, more of these environments are on the way from partnerships formed with Activision, Disney Eidos, Electronic Arts, Lucas Arts, THQ and Ubisoft.

"PlayStation Home is truly a promising network community service on the PlayStation platform, made possible with the powerful combination of PS3's overwhelming computational power and PlayStation Network that covers many countries around the globe," said Kazuo Hirai, President and Group CEO, SCE. "We are committed to providing PS3 users with exciting gaming experiences with PlayStation Home and together with our partners and users, expand the new world of interactive entertainment as we move forward."

If you were in the closed beta, the official PlayStation Blog is also reporting a few changes users will be seeing. A new four-player mini-game called "Saucer Pop" has been added to the Central Plaza. Here, players will launch a flying saucer and see who can get the most points from popping bubbles with hazards and bonuses inside them. Meanwhile, the Listen@Home station – a place in the plaza that pumps out music for everyone to get down to -- has been changed as well. Now, you're going to have a bunch of songs to choose from and you'll even be able to vote on which tune plays for everyone.

Today also brings word about the creation options you're going to have for your own avatar and Homespace. Since the game was announced at GDC 2007, we've known we'd be able to modify our character and that character's home, but now we know Sony's partnering with contemporary furniture designer Ligne Roset and international fashion design company Diesel to provide truly unique items that you'll be able to purchase from the stores in Home. Remember, Home itself is free, but it'll cost real money to add certain items and create clubs.

Beyond things you can do to your avatar, Home is said to have a wealth of content for you to do with your avatar. Sony Pictures Home Entertainment and Paramount Pictures have also been announced to provide "exclusive media viewings" through Home via dedicated spaces, virtual goods, and video content. Meanwhile, Red Bull will be the application's very first consumer brand space. Red Bull Island will feature an airplane racing game modeled after the Red Bull Air Race World Championship and is expected to expand in early 2009.

Whew. So, tomorrow's the day. Prepare your XMB for Home's arrival under the Network icon and prepare to get chatting. When Home is available, Sony says the "PlayStation Home icon will appear after booting/ re-booting the PS3 system. To enjoy PlayStation Home, users will need broadband network connection and PlayStation Network account in addition to the PS3 system."